ABOUT US
Representing arborists in Queensland and northern New South Wales since 1992
Who We Are
The Queensland Arboricultural Association Inc. (QAA) is a Not for Profit incorporated association representing arborists in Queensland and Northern New South Wales. Our mission is to provide support and guidance to the arboricultural industry, our members and the wider community.
The QAA was founded in 1992 to encourage more young contractors to join the industry, to keep them safe, and bring the community together. While the QAA has seen many changes over the years, our purpose remains the same; to preserve, protect, maintain, and enhance the recreational and environmental value of trees. As our industry learns to adapt and grow it is QAA’s responsibility to lead by example.
History
Did you know that the Queensland Arboricultural Association Inc. was created on a phone call in early 1992? With a simple, “Yeah, let’s do it”, the QAA’s journey began. The QAA was founded to encourage more young contractors to join the industry, to keep them safe, and bring the community together. Our goal was to make QLD arborists feel like a part of something bigger.
We were so passionate about the industry, that the early committee meetings commonly ran for 2‑3 hours at a time, sometimes longer. Our Executive Committee may fluctuate in size from year to year, but the passion for growth and industry development never changes.
Tragedy struck our community in 1996 when Roy Layton, a member of the first QAA Executive Committee, lost his life in a work related accident. Roy was working in a tree when his equipment failed and he fell out of the tree he was working on. Bottle trees were Roy’s favourite so a bottle tree (Brachychiton Rupestris) was planted at the Mt Coot‑Tha Botanical Gardens in his memory. We will never forget.
The Bottle Tree was later added to the QAA’s logo as a reminder of our goal – to reduce accidents and keep arborists safe. We want to build on that purpose by showing our members that we still care about the things they care about. We are committed to thinking outside the box to find new ways to support our members and the industry.